A scholarly attempt at an interpretation of Sunday's liturgical readings.

Archive for October, 2018

If you had the chance of keeping your five senses (touch, taste, hear, see, smell) which one would it be? Why? If you would lose sight, would you not miss the magnificent landscapes, sunsets, sunrises, color of leaves, beautiful natural wonders? What about losing hearing? No more favorite music. And the rest of the list could go on.

For me, it would be vision. Not only would I not be able to see the beauties of nature, but also reading, visiting museums, and the like. This would be depressing. This is probably why I feel a special sadness for Bartimaeus the blind in the Gospel for the 30th Sunday in Ordinary Time. (Mark 10:46-52)

A brief recount of the Gospel. Jesus is leaving Jericho, and by the roadside, Bartimaeus the blind is begging. He hears that it is Jesus passing by. Having heard some things about Jesus, he cries out, “Jesus, son of David, have pity on me.” The more others tried to calm him down, the louder was his shout.

Jesus heard him and came and asked what he wanted. He said, “Master, I want to see.” Quite likely Jesus looked at him, paused, and said,”Go your way, your faith has saved you.” Immediately, Bartimaeus’ vision was restored.

Doesn’t it seem strange that there is no touching or praying between Jesus and Bartimaeus as there was in other miracles of healing? What do you think Jesus was trying to convey? I suspect that Jesus wanted to point out the importance of faith. It is Bartimaeus’ faith that was the basis for the miracle. Why is this so important?

Quite likely, I suspect that faith is the basis for our judgements about people. For example. What do I really believe about Jesus? Do I believe what the Gospels say about Jesus? What about the Creed that I recite during Sunday Mass? Do I truly believe what it says about the Holy Trinity?

Also, what do I believe about other people? Do I believe what the book of Genesis say about all of us (Genesis 1:26-27), namely, that all of humanity is created in the image and likeness of God, no matter ethnic origin, place of birth, color of skin, economic status? Our faith is telling us that there is equality among us all.

Bartimaeus was healed because he truly believed in Jesus. Not only did he believe that Jesus could heal him but believed that he wouldheal him. This miracle was an act of physical healing.

We can be healed from our spiritual blindness ifwe believe and do what our faith teaches us about Jesus and our fellow human beings. Regarding Jesus, do we believe in what our faith tells us by way of the Bible and official church teaching? Regarding our fellow human beings, do we believe and do what Jesus teaches in the Gospels, namely, treat all others with justice, compassion, understanding, forgiveness. Is there that feeling of equality in our interaction?

In fact, every time that we see again (spiritual insight) in terms of how we see and treat our fellow human beings, it is a miracle of God’s love. This is really “making sense” of our spiritual insight.

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Quite likely most of us know of a friend, or a relative, who seems to be more concerned about the “reward” rather than the “challenge” to obtain the reward. Or as the modern phrase would have it, “putting the cart before the horse.”

In the Gospel for the Twenty Ninth Sunday in Ordinary Time (Mark 10:35-45), two disciples, James and John, appear to be of this type. They are concerned more about the “glory” than about working for it. They prefer the “resurrection” to the “passion and death.” It is quite clear that every true disciple of Jesus must accept the reality that there is pain and suffering before any kind of resurrection. It happened to Jesus, so it must happen to his disciples.

Looking at the Gospel, we can see James and John telling Jesus (not asking him) that there is something that they want Jesus to do. Trying to be helpful, Jesus asks them, “What do you want me to do?” They replied, “In your glory, that one might sit on your right, and the other on your left.”

This was indeed a cheeky statement. To sit directly on either side of the “master” was considered a great honor. It would be analogous to have an Army private ask to become a General right away. It is just not done. It appeared to Jesus that this came across, perhaps unintentional, that this was a “power grab.”

Jesus was aware of this, so he explained what a true disciple of his must do. Two things. First. Experience a “cross-suffering” moment before expecting a “resurrection.” James and John said that they could do this. Second. Know the difference between “to serve” and to “be served” and act upon it. By virtue of their question, James and John were not completely aware of this.

Consequently, Jesus’ response concerning true discipleship embraced both the ideas of accepting pain/sorrow before any kind of “resurrection,” and acting on the obvious difference between “service” and “being served.” The brothers were willing to do the former because of Jesus’ own experience. But the issue of “service” needed some explanation.

Incidentally, the first reading for the Sunday (Isaiah 53:10-11) speaks of the Suffering Servant who exemplifies the difference between being a servant and being served. In fact, Jesus put it quite clearly when he stated in the day’s Gospel, “…Whoever wants to be first must be last of all and servant of all.” (Mark 10:35) There are several examples of “serving others” in the Gospels. One of the most memorable is the Good Samaritan. (Luke 10:25-37)

What is it that the Gospel is trying to tell us? Actually, two things. The first lesson we can learn is to realize that all of us have to experience pain and suffering in our lives before there can be any amelioration. It becomes easier to endure problems as long as we believe that the situation will improve itself. Jesus established that experience in his own life.

Secondly, there is the question of service. The challenge will be to note the difference between serving others, in the sense of the Good Samaritan, and being served by others. Once we assume the fact that accepting the sequence of suffering before resurrection, and providing service to others, we won’t have to “put the cart before the horse” with regards to the effectiveness of our discipleship.

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One of the people I feel most sorry for is the man who is asked to sell his belongings and follow Jesus. (Mark 10:17-30) He seems to be a good person, wants to be better, but couldn’t say “no” to his wealth. Apparently, he had a good intention but a questionable motivation.

What do I mean by that? Reflection on the Gospel reading might give us an answer. A man runs up to Jesus, and asks him, “Teacher, what must I do to gain eternal life?” Simple question demands a simple answer. Jesus responds, “…Keep the commandments.” So he recites a few of them to reinforce the idea.

The man responds, ” Teacher, I have kept these for a long time.” Clearly the man is not satisfied with the minimum, so he wants a greater challenge. Jesus then gives him one. It is in the response to this choice where the motivation is tested.

Jesus states, “You are lacking one thing. Go, sell what you have and give to the poor…then come follow me.” I strongly suspect that the man gave this some serious thought. One could almost feel the silence. Then the man’s motivation was prompted by his reaction. The Gospel tells us: “The man went away sad, for he had many possessions.” He just couldn’t say “no” to his belongings.

The same choice is given to us in the sense that we are asked to share our gifts (and talents) with others. This is our baptismal responsibility as professed disciples of Jesus. Regarding talents, remember that no one has been cheated. St. Paul brings this out clearly. (I Cor. 12:4-11) All of us can do something that few others can.

The Lord does not expect everyone to be a St. Francis of Assissi giving away all one’s possessions. But he does expect all of us to accountfor our gifts and talents. The major question then becomes one of “motivation.” Why do we give or keep our gifts/talents?

We have to ask ourselves,”What do I do with my money after paying the bills?” Do I buy some trivial items because I think they might be fun or interesting? Or do I send some money to a missionary group taking care of very poor people in Africa, Asia, the Middle East, or people in these United States?

So much for the money. But what about my gifts/talents? Do I bother to share with others or not? All of us have something to give. For example, singing, playing an instrument, being a good listener, an excellent reader for Mass readings, and the list could go on. Why I do it or not becomes the motivation. Keep in mind that Jesus asks the difficult, but not the impossible.

The man in the Gospel was asked to do the difficult and not the impossible. But he was not ready. He had a faulty motivation in that he was too tied to his belongings. Because of our Baptism, we are also asked to do the difficult by sharing with others our gifts and talents. Our question is constant. What do I do with my money and/or gifts?Only my “motivation” can answer this, be it a “yes” (share it with others) or a “no” (keep it for myself.)

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The Gospel for the 26th Sunday in ordinary time (Mark 9:38-48) tells us that Jesus discussed a two-fold message with his disciples, namely, working in Jesus’ name and reward and punishment in the after life.

The first part of the message was “working in Jesus’ name.” To “work in someone’s name” means that the work was done with the implied authority of that person.

The disciple John raises the problem. “Teacher, someone is driving out demons in your name, and we tried to stop him because he does not follow us.” Note the key words in this complaint: “you” and “us.”

In John’s eyes these words of necessity belong together. But from Jesus’ point of view, one cancels out the us, because as he says in the Gospel reading, “Whoever is not against us is for us.” (Mark 9:40) So he tells the disciples to leave the man alone.

In other words, it is the Holy Spirit who provides the “authority” and not the institution. Whoever is not against Jesus is, by supposition, for him.

The second part of Jesus’ message to his disciples is “reward and punishment in the afterlife.” It was becoming clear to the disciples that being a follower of Jesus could well result in suffering, betrayal and death as was true in the case of Jesus himself. So, Jesus explained to his disciples that what you do in this life will affect what will happen in the after life.

If you do good things in this life, good things will happen to you in the next life. For example, “…Whoever gives you a cup of water to drink because you bear the name of Christ will by no means lose the reward.” (Mark 9:41)

Jesus was serious in the sense of good behavior especially for anyone who would be preaching in his name. Thus when he spoke of bad things his followers might do, he emphasized the point by speaking in hyperbole. This means that in order to get a point across one emphasizes it by virtue of exaggeration. What does this mean?

We often do it ourselves. For instance, when I tell someone, “I told you a million times not to do that.” In fact, it may have been only two or three time, but by exaggerating the number there is the likelihood the person will be more easily convinced.

The three body parts that Jesus discusses are: hand, foot, and eye. If the hand or foot is a cause of sin, cut it off. If the eye is a cause of sin, pluck it out. These are hyperbolic ways of dealing with sins. The hand is often an instrument of sin (e.g. stealing). The feet are means of transport to get you to commit the sin. And the eye provides the source of temptation.

What is it that the Gospel reading can tell us? First of all, because of our Baptism, we are disciples of Jesus and have the responsibility to speak and act inhis name. So our words and actions are very important in order for others to make a judgement about us.

Secondly, our speech and behavior in this life will definitely affect us in the next life. By speaking hyperbolically, Jesus most likely convinced his listeners that hands, feet, and eyes would be more effective by being of service to others rather than by giving them bad example. Being of service to others would probably mean being hyperbolic in our own self judgement. After all, we claim do things in Jesus’ name.